10 Yoga Poses To Feel Happier Fast

If only life could be all rainbows and unicorns—we'd chase the shadows and demons away with pixie dust and optimism! But, of course, life isn't always so bright and cheerful. It gets complicated, confusing, and at times even overwhelming. Basically, there's a strong chance that you'll struggle with some kind of depression or emotional issue at some point in your life.

Enter yoga. A BioPsychoSocial Medicine article revealed that long-term yoga practice can significantly reduce fear, anger, and fatigue. Researchers administered the Profile of Mood States (POMS) questionnaire to two groups of healthy women—one group of women who had more than two years of yoga experience and one group of women who had never practiced yoga. The long-term yoga practitioners had, on average, lower mental disturbance, tension, anxiety, anger, hostility, and fatigue scores than the control group.

Whether you're down in the dumps after being dumped, need motivation to get out of bed and get through the day, or just feel out of sorts emotionally, yoga can help you get back on your feet. Try the following 10 poses to feel better fast.

Do it for:Anxiety
Anxiety is like the bully or mean girl you dreaded in middle school. Even if you start your day full of optimism, she lurked in the shadows, waiting to pounce when you least expected her. Anxiety works in much the same way—your fears and worries hover around you all the time, preventing you from feeling confident and happy.

In camel pose, the backbend creates a sense of fearlessness. It exposes your heart and soft underbelly, but in a safe and supported way.

Begin by kneeling with your knees and feet hip-width apart and the tops of your feet flat on the floor.

Do it for:Mild depression
When you're not feeling particularly happy, try to make your yoga practice about joy, and invite it back into your life, pose by pose, breath by breath. Mild depression can be eased with rejuvenating, playful yoga postures. Backbends, like the slight one in crescent, are proven to release endorphins.

Begin standing with feet shoulder-width apart. Step back about one leg length with your left foot as you bend your right knee to a 90-degree angle.

Keep both feet hip-width apart, with your weight resting on the heel of your front foot and on the ball of your back foot.

Do it for:Insomnia
Insomnia—that evil, sleep-stealing monster that lurks under the bed! It feeds off stress, anxiety, and what we in yoga call "the constant fluctuations of the mind," or racing thoughts. Use these poses to calm your mind and relax your nervous system.

Start on all fours with your hips stacked over your knees and your shoulders stacked over your wrists.

Do it for:Vertigo
Vertigo can be triggered by many things—an inner ear infection, spinal dysfunction, or even stress and anxiety. Use this pose to release stress and tension, and remind yourself that you can stand strong.

Start with your feet parallel and one leg-length apart.

Rotate your left foot out 90 degrees and your right foot in slightly, so your left heel is lined up with your right foot's arch.

Do it for:Relaxation
We all know how hard it is to relax in a world of perpetual motion—our days are packed with meetings and phone calls and social events, not to mention the constant checking of emails, text messages, and social media sites. But we also know how critical it is to be able to tune out all this noise and clear our heads.

Begin on your back, with your knees bent wide and the soles of your feet together.

Do it for:A broken heart
You're in love, blissfully happy, and singing from the rooftops—then suddenly, you find yourself curled up in a ball with a tearstained face and a feeling of despair. A broken heart very well may be the most painful injury ever—with few proven ways of rehab. There's plenty of advice out there: "Time heals all wounds" and "There are plenty of fish in the sea," but often those words just aren't enough. Let this pose remind you that you're completely in charge of your own happiness.

Stand with your feet one leg's distance apart and your feet parallel.

Rotate your heels in and toes out until your knees point in the same direction as your toes.

Do it for:Headache
Even incredibly sweet people go postal when a migraine hits them. It’s hard to maintain any sense of well-being when your entire head is throbbing and it hurts to blink. Unfortunately, the best remedy for a migraine is a dark room, a cold compress, and sleep. But yoga can also do wonders to thwart an oncoming migraine, and without a doubt it can help prevent future attacks.

Begin seated, with your left leg straight and your right knee bent.

Bring the sole of your right foot to rest against your inner upper thigh. Inhale and extend your spine.

Exhale, spin your chest over your left knee, and grab the outer edge of your left foot, or clasp your right wrist with your left hand.

Do it for:Bedroom confidence
Nothing's sexier than a confident partner. You can do squats till you can bounce a quarter off your butt, but if you don't believe you're sexy, it won't translate to someone else. Practicing yoga blends the physical bonus of gaining strength and an attractive figure with the confidence that your body type is perfect and made just for you.

Do it for:Intimacy and sensuality
Maybe you brought sexy back, but you still can't quite get on the same track as your partner. When words fail you, unroll your yoga mats and practice moving and breathing together. Your heart rates will rise for long enough for you to sweat out stress and then lower again to calm your hearts (just in time to send those pulses racing again!).

Sit tall with your back pressed against your partner's and reach your right arm towards their left thigh and your left arm onto your right thigh.

Gently press down on the thigh or slide your hand to their inner thigh.

Push your legs down with your hands as you sit tall and revolve your chest to the right.

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